Giovanni Diodati – An Italian at Dordt
In 1618, the situation in Europe was tense. The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) was only a natural consequence of the religious and political conflicts of the previous century. On top…
Simonetta Carr
Simonetta Carr is a wife, mother, home school educator, and writer of many books and articles. Check out her Alliance podcast Kids Talk Church History.
Vittoria Colonna – the Poet Who Inspired Michelangelo
The first meeting between Vittoria Colonna and Michelangelo Buonarroti (probably around 1537) was the start of a long and deep friendship. It was also, in some ways, uncommon. As…
Ephrem the Syrian and His Scriptural Songs
Ephrem was still a young man when his quick understanding, knowledge of Scriptures, literary skills, and love for the church captured the attention of the local bishop. Jacob had been…
Francis Gomarus and the Synod of Dordt
Tempers ran high at the Synod of Dordt. By January 1619, Francis Gomarus, Reformed minister and veteran professor at the University of Leiden, had come to take some Remostrants’ opinions…
Macrina the Younger – The Fourth Cappadocian
The Cappadocian Fathers (Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory of Nazianzus) are well known for their theological contributions to the doctrines of the Trinity and the nature of…
John Newton as Father – Through Joys and Pains
The first part of John Newton’s life is well known. Born in 1725 in Wapping, London, he lived a turbulent youth, dominated, from age 17, by compelling feelings of love…
William Cowper – “A Stricken Deer”
1773 didn’t start well for William Cowper. In spite of seemingly comfortable circumstances, he felt pressured by both hurtful local gossip and well-meaning friendly advice into making a decision he…
Lucy Hutchinson – A Puritan Woman in Changing Times
Seventeenth-century England was a time of uncertainty, upheaval, and questions, a time of civil and religious wars, revolutions, plague and fire. Books and articles tell us of the people who…
“IF YOUR AFFECTION SHALL BE INCLINED” – SOME MARRIAGE PROPOSALS OF PROTESTANT REFORMERS
The Protestant Reformation created some new questions in love relationships. For example, what’s an appropriate way for a Protestant preacher to propose to a lady or, even worse, for a…
Cyril and Methodius and the Struggle for Local Language Translations
Sixteenth-century Reformers were not the first to advocate the translation of the Bible and church liturgy in the language of the people. Nor were they the first to suffer opposition.…
Jeanne d’Albret – a Determined Woman
Some of the most influential women in church history were princesses or queens, who had the ability to establish a state religion according to their convictions. At a time when…
Gregory of Nazianzus and Why Knowing the Nature of the Holy Spirit Really Matters
On the vigil of Easter in 379, a group composed mostly of monks and women rushed into a church, attacked the congregants, wounded the preacher, and killed another bishop. They…